Dr Lindsey Hall, Wellcome Trust Investigator, Senior Lecturer and Research Leader in Gastrointestinal Sciences, Norwich Medical School, Universtiy of East Anglia

Title:  Early Life Microbiota-Host Interactiions

Venue:  Seminar Room, OS6, Second Floor, Oakfield House

Biography

Lindsay Hall qualified with a BSc (Hons) in Microbiology from the University of Glasgow in 2003. She went on to study for a PhD in Microbiology and Immunology, specifically vaccine development, at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute under the supervision of Prof Gordon Dougan. In 2007 Lindsay took up a postdoctoral position at the Alimentary Pharambiotic Centre, University College Cork in Ireland, where she worked on intestinal inflammatory disorders and started research into the bacterial communities that inhabit the gut, termed the microbiota. She returned to the UK in October 2011 to take up a lecturing and Principle Investigator position within the Norwich Medical School, UEA and also a Research Leader position at the Institute of Food Research. In 2013 Lindsay was awarded a 5 year Wellcome Trust New Investigator Award and is building her research team that studies the role of early life gut microbiota.

Abstract

The gut is home to an astonishingly diverse, dynamic, and populous ecosystem. This complex microbial community, termed the microbiota, is critical for host wellbeing. Disturbances in our microbiota, such as via caesarian sections and antibiotic exposure, can lead to increased susceptibility to pathogens, as well as atopic, and chronic inflammatory diseases. Bifidobacteria constitute a substantial proportion of the gut microbiota, particularly during early life and high-levels are associated with the development of mucosal defence. Currently there are many bifidobacterial species and strains with claimed health promoting or 'probiotic' attributes, however the mechanisms through which these strains reside within their host and exert benefits is far from complete. In this talk I will discuss the role of the gut microbiota with the host, focusing on the example of bifidobacteria in host colonisation, epithelial cell cross-talk, pathogen protection, and how probiotics represent a powerful opportunity for strategically manipulating the early life microbiota when bacterial assembly is disturbed within the context of preterm birth.